A History of Playing Cards and a Bibliography of Cards and Gaming [Unabridged] [Paperback]

Catherine Perry Hargrave (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 11, 2001

Intricate, absorbing study based on research and card collections from around the world tells the story of playing cards and their manufacture, plus provides a fascinating overview of heraldry, geography, history, and the social and political activities of man over the past six centuries. Includes an enormous annotated bibliography of more than 900 items on playing cards and games, and over 1,400 illustrations. Praised by The New York Times as "the most authoritative and complete treatment of its kind."

Product Details

• Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: Dover Publications; Unabridged edition (January 11, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0486412369
• ISBN-13: 978-0486412368
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,334,568 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars informative but dry, January 30, 2002

By 

Dan Trachtman (Rockville, MD USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A History of Playing Cards and a Bibliography of Cards and Gaming (Paperback)

First, an important note: There seems to be 2 versions of this book floating around. One with 16 color plates and one that is all B&W. I learned this when I received mine and found that it was all B&W. Be sure you know which you are getting.
Also, many of the b&w images appear to be poor photocopies, either far too light or too dark.

This book is no doubt the authority. It is very well researched. But the way it is organized is rather dull. Each chapter basically lists and briefly discusses all the cards that were found from that particular country. It might have been more interesting if there was more discussion of how the different suites evolved or how the countries influenced each other.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Playing Cards Historically, March 28, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: History of Playing Cards and a Bibliography of Cards and Gaming (Paperback)

This book is a well-researched, thorough and informative guide to the history of playing cards. I was especially interested in the medieval information, but found the entire work clear and easy to follow, while keeping up high standards of academic quality. I would recommend this work to anyone seriously interested in the history of the field. The Plates were also very helpful in illustrating the development and styles of cards through the centuries.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A little heady, but a good book on the subject, April 2, 2004

By 

R. Grant "goodlemarr" (Easton, PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A History of Playing Cards and a Bibliography of Cards and Gaming (Paperback)

I'd been looking around for a fairly comprehensive work on Playng Card history, and found this a pretty good choice. A bit wordy and heady at times, but covers things well.